Holly Delaney
Character History 'A sheltered existence.' Holly Delaney was born in London, England to Andrew and Poppy Winters. Her childhood was that of a normal girl with one twist: her mother secretly taught mutants whose appearances would be too obvious in the real world. Aside from that she grew relatively normal with her little family consisting of a mother, father, and older brother. At a young age, Holly displayed a kindness and maturity well beyond her years and because of her incredible kindness her family thought that it would put her into dangerous situations and took great strength to protect her. In secret Holly grew to dislike their over protectiveness but understood that they were just trying to protect her so she grinned and accepted it. At age seven Holy began taking the violin, a part of her home schooling since her mother feared that Holly and her brother would inadvertently expose the school. She grew to love the violin and became quite gifted in it. When she was about eight, she was finally able to attend a real school. Despite her sheltered existence, Holly wound up making a few friends. Unfortunately, though, Holly had to be extremely careful about who her friends were and her parents constantly cautioned her about who she placed her trust because the secrecy of the school was more important. As a result, even though Holly was outgoing, social, and friendly, she often had to shy away to avoid unnecessary attention. Adding that to her family’s already over protectiveness due to her strong willed nature, her sheltered existence remained all the way up to high school. It was during her freshman year that her friends convinced her to change her hair color from blonde to brown. She figured that if she couldn’t do any of the stuff that her other friends do, because she was usually not allowed to go with them due to her parents’ worries over their young daughter, Holly figured at this way she could do something wild while still staying close to home. She loved the rich new color, though her parents disapproved since she did it without their permission, they eventually warmed up to it. During that same year her brother soon found out that he was a mutant and was sent to the States in order to learn how to take better care of his powers. Holly missed her brother dearly and was still having trouble coming to terms with her sheltered existence against a rebellious attitude. A healer's touch. Over the summer before turning sixteen, Holly discovered she was a mutant when one of the mutants her mother taught got cut on the palm of her hand. Holly decided to help her out and when looking at the wound, unbeknownst the wave of concern, it started to heal when Holly’s hand hovered over it slightly. Her mother walked in right at that moment and saw the glow radiating off of Holly’s hand and the nonexistent wound on her students. When Holly's mother told her that she would not be going to Xavier's to be with her brother, Holly had to take actions into her own hands. She knew full well her powers would never develop to their potential here so, though it'd break her family's heart, late one evening Holly Delaney ran away. With what money she had she managed her way onto an airplane, getting the cheapest flight she could find with what little knowledge of computers she had, and left. Running away. When she arrived in New York City she needed some kind of transportation to get to Salem Center and the Institute. She had gotten this far but hadn't thought far enough ahead to save some pocket change to call her brother to come find her. However while musing over her dilemma she heard struggling coming from down an alley that she was about to cross. Peering inside to see if it was safe to walk past, a shot rang and three men ran out. Walking inside she saw a middle aged man wearing some kind of apron, a butcher's apron, bleeding all around. Bending down, Holly tried to save the man's life with her powers and succeeded, but left a scar. The man was so thankful to be alive that he asked if there was anyway he could repay her. Holly had found her ride. 'A new home and new experiences.' Holly’s first year at the school was a bumpy ride to say the least, but a fun one at the same time. When she first arrived she surprised her brother with her arrival and quickly settled in. With her healing powers it was suggested, though not forced on her, that she join the infirmary staff, which she did. A little uncomfortable at first, she was quickly about to prove useful when her new friend Eve Taylor needed assistance. Holly and she, as well as her brother, Aiko and Jean-Paul, were attacked by none other than Sinister. Eve was taken and Holly was expected to show up alone. After a confrontation with Sinister, she was able to heal Eve as much as possible before suffering from a little friendly fire when Eve unintentionally attacked her out of shock. During the first two months at Xavier’s she quickly became friends with Lochlan Wyeth, a roommate of her brother, Toby. He quickly took a liking to the girl, eventually settling into a brother/sister type of relationship and much like her brother, has been ever so protective. In October she was around to heal Aiko after her kidnapping, her appearance shocking the young girl but nevertheless she did her duty as best as she could. Her powers grew consistently over the next few months afterwards as she entered a grace period of no problems on her end except minor injuries here and there. In February, Holly was accidentally shipped off to Avalon, her “sister” Diana’s grandparent’s home and assisted actually faeries in the birth of twins Tanner and Susana Sottomayor. The natural birth was grueling but she did what she could to assist the midwife and was given a book of natural and medicinal remedies as a thank you. After returning home it wouldn’t be the last time she assisted in birth as March rolled around and she helped the infirmary staffs deliver Jocelyne Oke, Caroline Davis’ daughter. When the Haiti earthquake reached the residents of Xavier’s, Holly was one of the healers who volunteered to go and help. There they encountered Sinister again as well as Nova Starr, a student who was suspected of being kidnapped by the Purifiers. Obviously brain washed, the team had to fight her off and it was then that she discovered her new ability, her death touch, which can disintegrate anything she touches. After coming back and having difficulty in controlling it, Holly was eventually able to resume duties in the infirmary. New job, new friends, new hardships. Near the end of the year, Holly took an internship with Runway Magazine, as a second assistant to Miranda Bedingfield. The woman, being unlike any person she met before, is a little scary but Holly sees it as a way to further her success for the future, as those who work for Miranda for at least a year end up proving themselves in high stressful situations. Around the same time she met Tristan Black, a man she was automatically attracted to despite being simultaneously frustrated by his attitude. She couldn’t get a grasp on him who annoyed her a bit but eventually the two were able to settle into a somewhat awkward friendship though Holly still feels attraction towards him. After a back and forth game they entered into a brief relationship. She also started hanging out with a new group of friends (which consisted of Rowan, Eve, Elle, and Jenny) and snuck out to an Eminem concert in the Bronx. After getting stranded, the product of a shoot out, they had no choice but to call Mr. Summers after attempts at getting money for their own transportation proved futile. A little drunk and a little wild, Mr. Summers had no choice but to severely punish them. This was the second time that Holly had gotten into so much trouble, though she doesn't regret a thing of it. Before summer, Holly was kidnapped by Rhian a Brotherhood member under orders by Devon, who held a deep hatred for Toby, and brought to a warehouse along with Juliet, Toby’s girlfriend. Forced to hear the screams and shouts of Juliet because she was wearing a blind fold, Holly was helpless to help her. Once Toby arrived at the seen and was able to untie Holly, she was able to heal Juliet, saving her from death, though her powers gave out before she was able to repair all the damage. Not soon after that, several disappearing started happening around the mansion. Soon enough the discovery that the Purifier’s were involved prompted Professor Xavier to send a team to the base to rescue them. Holly was part of the infirmary team sent in to heal the wounded and a side effect of Holly’s powers came out which allowed her to see mental flashes through the eyes of the victims of what had occurred. Seeing through the eyes of her friend Rowan, Holly was shocked, horrified, and traumatized by what she saw. After the events, Holly started attending regular sessions with Dr. Greene though she still has occasional nightmares of what the victims went through. After a few months of regular sessions, Holly was finally able to put to terms her new powers and the things she's been seeing. It seemed like her life had finally calmed down, for the most part. Early on in the year Holly showed increased aggression due to the lack of sleep after the most frequent flare of her powers had her afraid to shut her eyes at night. Getting into a fight at school with a bully from her class forced Toby to consider sending her back to their parents. In an act of defiance, Holly refused to listen and began spending more time doing what she wanted at times having to sneak around to do it. Around the same time she met Jake, a recent addition to Xavier's and it wasn't long before the pair grew into something more than just friends. Although Toby didn't like it, Holly continued to see the 'bad boy' mafia prince from California. Near the end of the year, Jake's father finally tracked him down and in a scuffle that claimed yet another member of the organization, it was obvious that nowhere in the states was safe. Getting close to graduation, Holly proposed he moved to England with her as she had recently gained acceptance to Cambridge University. The pair left not long after graduation where Holly spoke as class valedictorian. 'College Years: New Beginnings' Cambridge, England UK Her first two years out of Xavier's were spent in her home country of England attending the University of Cambridge. With Jake, she found a one bedroom flat a few blocks from her university where she was able to commute to school without any difficulty. Moving in with Jake was a bold decision, one that her mother ferociously was against simply because the two were too young and she had fears that Holly would sacrifice her dreams for a mediocre life with someone. The two Winters women would never see eye to eye when it came to Jake and that became abundantly clear when Holly had invited her mother over for dinner in an attempt to formally meet Jake and catch up on things. While her mother was normally sweet, she was opinionated in her belief and had to problem addressing her concerns over this unit. After an argument which resulted in her mother bringing up Holly's abandonment of her family to move to the states (a backhanded insinuation that she was attracted to danger and rule breaking which is what she saw Jake as) Holly kicked her mother out of the flat, effectively creating a drift. This would be the first of many obstacles in her relationship with Jake. Her first few months at university proved stressful, not only in terms of school work but also in her relationship. Holly was branching out and meeting new people, which meant that she was extending her social circle. Jake, meanwhile, was having difficulty finding suitable work creating more stress between the pair as Jake spent a lot of his time either out looking for a job or at home waiting for a call. Things didn't help when a man by the name of Wren came into the picture, becoming a dear friend to Holly. Similar in backgrand and in studies, Holly and Wren quickly built a friendship that in one drunken night resulted in a kiss outside of a pub that Wren was performing in. Instantly regrettful, Holly made it clear she had no interest and was in fact very much in love with Jake before walking off, drunk, towards her home. While she intended on telling Jake the truth, she couldnt bring herself to do it as growing tensions in the home resulted in a late night fight late December, resulting in Jake leaving the apartment. Those weeks in January without him were brutal and made Holly feel more alienated in her life than ever before. Her friends were back in New York, having visited last semester but now resuming their courses at Xavier's and she wasn't on speaking terms with her mother. She couldn't even imagine what she'd tell Toby or Diana and as such she barely contacted them except for a few phone calls here and there. This caused her and Wrent to become closer as she soon came to rely on him more. One night, Jake finally returned, drunk and smelling of perfume. Although nothing had occurred between Jake and this mystery woman, Holly assumed the worst and grief stricken she pushed him out of the house. Thinking it was the beginning of the end, Holly sought out Wren for a friendly conversation, to which he mistook for something more. Clearly with no intention of ever following through, Holly rebuffed his advances to which they got into an argument, causing Holly to walk out. When she arrived outside her building she found Jake there waitin for her. After a lengthy conversation shared with tears and laughter, the two reconciled. The pair entered a period of peace in which they soon grew to know each other better than before with things in school calming down and Jake eventually finding a job. Holly's final semester before summer went without a hitch and the pair took the opportunity to travel Europe for the summer with nothing but the clothes on their back. Taking Europe Holly and Jake enjoyed traveling through Europe and experiencing the world. Their first stop was France and quickly moved onto Spain and Portugal. Enjoying everything the world had to offer was a shared passion that both had and it was enough for Jake to give Holly and hand crafted promise ring. It wasn't a promise for marriage, but a promise for a future. One where they were both in it together. Making their way through Italy, holly ran into an old beggar man on the outskirts of Naples. she had taken pity on him and given him some food and water. In a show of gratitude the beggar gave her a necklace as the only thing worth value that he carried. The leather chained pyramid necklace was taken in gratitude if not with a little resistance, but at his urgence it found its way to her. Holly spent the next few days trying to decipher the necklace, but she could only trace it back to Egypt, where after that, the trace of its origins went cold. Despite their tranquil summer, not all was what it seemed as Holly encountered the same man in Verona, under different circumstances. Bloodied and fearful, the man had sought her out to explain something urgent to her. However, before he could even explain everything he was shot several more times, dying instantly. The only words he left her with was "It's not what it seems.". Soon Jake and Holly were a hunted pair as men came in searching for something that they were sure they had. All they kept referring it to was the 'the eye'. Their cross country chase led them to Egypt, just as things were growing in chaos in the country. It was there that she ran into someone she swore she may never see again: Tristan. He had explained to her that 'the eye' was Egyptian. The story told that after Osiris was resurrected, it was never meant to remain permanent. With his final breath he charged Anubis with 'the eye' a sacred artifact that held the key to life, although in what ways and what purpose it showed was lost. Anubis hid it away because its power proved to great to fall even into a god's hands. Holly, refusing to believe in its truth, remained in a state of skepticism, however people were after them because they thought she had it. It didn't take long for Jake to discover the necklace the beggar had given her and it was theorized that this was 'the eye' that Damian, the leader of the band of mercenaries, was after. In a final show down, Holly used herself and the necklace as bait, although Jake profusely expressed resistence to the idea. Throwing the necklace into the Nile, Tristan and Jake battled the mercenaries, barely escaping with their lives. After which, Holly and Tristan exchanged a few words realizingly was in love with Jake and happy the two parted on amicable terms. Rising Tensions After Holly and Jake returned from Egypt, they spent the next few weeks in bliss before school began again. Things had been growing progressively worse in America and as a consequence the world was facing rising ant-mutant propeganda. Squabbles here and there throughout England worried the pair however they remained relatively low-key until new of the New York City take over by the Brotherhood reached them. England worried that the same thing would happen to them and as a result, rising police action was taken to quell and pro-mutant riots and a special task force was implemented to discover any terrorist cells working to create a 'Mutant City' in England. After some talk, Holly and Jake realized it would be better to move back to New York City and stay close to the mansion where they can aid where they could and be protected by their friends and family. Before December was over, Holly had put in a transfer for Cornell University. After the holidays, Holly and Jake were slowly preparing for their move when Holly's mother unexpectedly stopped by. She urged her daughter not to go back to New York. She knew Toby would never leave the area even if it was better for him and Juliet and she knew that it would only get worse. The Americans would never take their city being taken over lightly and that could only lead to a war. Holly, however, refused to listen, but it did give mother and daughter the chance to reconcile. April 13th 2013 was the day everything changed. A riot on the University of Cambridge grounds would find Holly and Jake caught in the fire. On their way to safety, Holly found a young mutant boy about to be killed by several armed men. Without a moment's hesitation Holly jumped and burned one of the men alive. Holly was pushed off, but it was too late, the man was dying. In a fit of anger over his lost comrade, the man point the gun and shot at her. Holly was pushed out of the way at the last moment by Jake and he took a bullet to the temple. Holly screamed in agony. The man was about to shoot her as well when the boy they had saved, Gideon, shot the man in the back, saving them both. That night they escaped with their lives, but not before Holly had to be wretched from Jake's lifeless body in tears. Several weeks later, Holly had a private funeral for Jake with Gideon present to pay his respects for the person who saved him. Toby showed up soon after to bring Holly to the airport. Even if Jake was gone she still had plans to move to New York as Jake's presence was all over their flat and she couldn't stay there without him. It took Holly several months to grieve properly, first opting to stay with the dorms at Cornell for the summer so she could be alone and the moving back to the mansion in August. Finding a New Normal When Holly arrived at the mansion, she tried her hardest to act as if everything was okay. Only Toby and Juliet really knew of what happened to Jake with her friends assuming her three year romance ended. Holly lead them to believe that because just the idea of bringing up his death cut her deep and acting like everything was okay would be ruined if she actually had to admit that. A few weeks into her stay, Holly reuinted with Andrew Sloss, Ivy's ex-fiance whom the blonde had left last December. Of course Holly knew about it after she and Ivy had run into each other in London. After explaining the circumstances, Holly understood that it was their tragedy that they had to live with. However, Andy seemed fine and in order to avoid awkwardness, Holly decided not to bring up anything and the two were able to form a friendship. From their first meeting to their first unofficial 'date', Holly and Andy hit it off, however the idea that these two were becoming friends felt weird to Holly as she wasn't sure if it was right being friends with her best friend's ex. Although the pair hadn't spoken to each other in months, Holly was sure that if it boiled down to it, she would always fight for Ivy's side and as such forming a friendship with Andy was something that she needed to figure out. However, over the following weeks a new obstacle that Holly had equal difficulty to coming to terms with was her attraction to him. True he was an attractive person, but she was still grieving over Jake and she couldn't see herself forming a relationship with anyone, much less Andy. After a lunch date with her friend Farrah, the woman explained to Holly that it needed be a true relationship. She understood that Holly was in a state of grief, but she couldn't widow herself forever or feel like she was betraying Jake every time she felt attracted to someone. She needed to grief properly and work out her emotions as they come. She couldn't allow herself to hide forever. It was Holly's 20th birthday when she took the plunge and admitted to Andy that she was attracted to him, sealed with a kiss. Afterwards, Holly propositioned the idea figuring that he felt the same way she did concerning relationships and that he was free to say no, however she hoped he wouldn't think less of her. Admitting that he wouldn't, Andy agreed to their new arrangement and that weekend was the first weekend they spent together. It was a little nerve wracking and Holly wasn't sure of herself, but after they started, they fell into it naturally and everything synced up naturally. For the first time since Jake's death she felt real and wanted and free of the crippling emotions that she had numbed herself to. Around late September, the fall of Mutant City took place. This became a critical turning point for her as not only was she trapped in the very fears her mother had told her about, but she had to once again use her powers to kill. Making her way towards the river with Shelby Sloss, eventually the pair reunited with Andy and Betsy Broddock after already collecting Stevie Johnson on their way through the streets. In what should have been a moment of safety and relief, Holly was shot through the head by a man she encountered twice since arriving in New York. Lucid yet barely responsive, Holly was teleported to the infirmary and surgery was performed on her to not only remove the bullet but release the tension brought up by brain swelling. After the combined healing efforts of Chloe and Dominic, Holly spent the next several days in the hospital to monitor and cognitive affects of the wound. Although she couldn't remember much from the event (including Andy admitting that Holly has affected him more than she realized) she did remember feeling a confusing swell of jealousy at the idea of Andy and Betsy being on a date. Scared and feeling like she would not only betray Ivy but also Jake, Holly buried the feelings deep within herself. Powers and Abilities 'Healing' Holly's primpary power functions on the cellular level to heal and regenerate broken ceels as well as multiply them to instantly heal wounds or reverse them to stop abnormal cell growth. This is a very advanced usage of healing in which she can fix many wounds, both internal and external, via touch. She doesn't use a form of energy healing, but literally regenerates the dying cells or causes erratic cellular division only long enough to fix the damanged area. She is able to mend broken bones, fix tears in organs and muscles and even fix lesions in the human brain. She can also manipulate the fluids within the body and purge toxins and poisons that a person has been infected with. She has even been able to heal bacterial and viral diseases by super charging the person's immune system or killing off the virus itself. 'Healing psychometry' A side effect of Holly's abilities, which came shortly after the Purifier plot (XI4), is when healing she gets mental flashes or visions of how the person got the infliced wound or wounds. They happen in short bursts that paint a clear picture in her mind of what happened. The mental flashes happen spontaneously, outside of Holly's control and can come randomly long after the healing process is done and physical contact is removed. In order to get these visions, Holly must first make contact with the victim i.e. when she heals them. With this power, she can get an insight about the traumaitc events if it is necessary to know about them, without having to push the victim into revealing the information and forcing them to retell, and by extension recall, the event that transpired. 'Death touch' Like the name says this is a counterpart to Holly's healing ability. The bame gives some indication that it can kill someone but it doesn't have to. What it can do is, depending on how long someone is in her grip and how long she lets the power activate, it can cause welts on the skin and burn them from the outside. Holly's hands burn with such intensity that she just needs to touch someone to give them second or third degree burns (her powers are too intense to give them only first degree). Her powers pretty much fries the body from the outside and works its way in, burning up the fluids, heating the blood and burning the organs of the body. This leaves the person (if she does kill them) horribly burned. Her powers work from the point of contact and works its way around the body as it burns up everything in sight. In sever cases the body could look black and charred. She can even work from the inside in, burning the blood and tissue and killing them from the inside so it doesn't appear as if she did anything from looking at the outside of the body. Aside from humans, Holly could also burn anything else made of inorganic or organic matter. She could weld through an iron door, wood and any kind of fabric. She cannot burn through heat resistant obects. The energy in her hands is different from her healing one. Instead of shining gold it shines red. 'Special Skills' *Violinist *Medical knowledge (LPN certified) *Academics *Argumentation *Sigh reading *Gaelic language *Speed reading *Medical expertise *Perfect audio memory *Fighting (beginner's level) 'Weaknesses' Healing: For healing, if she overexerts her powers, she can get knocked out or fall into a coma for several days depending on how badly she overuses them. Again, her powers come from her hands so she can’t heal someone from far away, but she has to make physical contact with the person in order for her powers to work. She can’t recreate organs yet. It is too outside the scope of her powers and would create too much energy for her, which could eventually kill her or at least land her in a coma. Perhaps the biggest weakness to her powers is that she doesn't self heal so if she were to get seriously hurt or injured, she would not be able to recuperate rapidly but rely on her own body to heal her at the normal human rate. Healing psychometry: Holly has zero control over them, meaning that she never knows when they’re coming. Sometimes they come when she’s healing someone other times they don’t. Also, she sometimes gets random bursts of information long after she removed physical contact with the person she heals, sometimes hours after, which show some of the scenes that her initial mental flash didn’t show when in their presence. This can come into the form of random visions or nightmares. As these are about traumatic events, Holly will of course suffer mentally for this and need therapy in order to deal with the visions. Death touch: These powers only come from her hands so if someone were to grab her wrists or trap them in something that makes it impossible for her to use her powers than they are useless. If she is angry or scared her powers can spontaneously come out as a form of self defense making it impossible for her to touch anything. The thing with her powers is the more fear she has the longer they stay so she’d need to calm herself down for her to power down. However, the opposite can also happen were her emotions are too jumbled that her powers do not come out at all. It is obvious when her touch of death is present because they glow red when in use (the opposite of her healing which glows gold). A way to contain her powers is to put her hands in anything heat or if someone was heat resistant (for example Amara in her Magma form).. Personality At a first glance Holly is a very social and outgoing young woman, usually the first to approach someone when she sees them alone. She doesn’t like to hold back on what she thinks and will more often than not tell you exactly what is on her mind unless she feels there is a reason she shouldn’t. She’s a helpful girl with compassion very suitable for her profession as a healer in the infirmary. Most time she is a very level headed young girl who likes to keep grasp of the situation instead of letting her emotions run rampant. She is logical and filled with wisdom well beyond her age. She likes to look at both sides of the coin before giving a final decision. She never prejudges a person but instead tries to look at all views as well as letting their actions speak for themselves. Holly is a very daring individual, always looking to experience life as well as try and learn new things. Sure some of the methods may go on the more reckless side, but Holly feels in order to experience and live life to the fullest, rule breaking is an occasional price to pay. She loves to have fun when she can and be a normal teen which matches her desire to get out and experience new things, which can sometimes land her in more trouble, but she never misses an opportunity to do something crazy and fun at least once. Extremely bright, determined, and head strong, Holly sees every opportunity as a challenge and has a thirst for knowledge that allows her to figure out often challenging answers. She’s not one to quickly give up on something and when she is invested, she gives it her all. A very loyal girl to friends and family, despite her inability to defend herself she will defend anyone of her loved ones even if it means putting herself in danger in their place. Holly, being a very logical girl, sometimes thinks with her head more often than with her heart. She’s not too logical or standoffish that she comes off cold but she doesn’t like letting her emotions get the better of her which often times results in her sacrificing what she wants in the name of practicality. Where she normally keeps a cool head no one will be able to see the current of emotions that run just under the surface. As a result she doesn’t let many of her emotions out in extremely stressful situations which make people think that she can take a lot more than what she really can, resulting in her getting overstressed and on edge easily. She gets frustrated easily when it comes to not knowing something and will often go to great lengths to figure out the answers. Once too trusting, this quality of hers hasn’t completely escaped her, though now she is more hesitant through experience. When it comes to her friends or those she knows she trusts them whole heartedly which can make betrayal all the more difficult. Holly also has a tendency to put herself in danger, unknowingly or knowingly, due to her daring and adventurous nature. Another consequence to her daring and adventurous side is her idea of trying things that often put her in situations that can land her in trouble with others. As a result, some may pin point her as reckless, childish, or rebellious when she necessarily isn’t any of those, but merely trying to try things out first hand. Despite her experiences, she still likes to see the best in people even when they don’t see it in themselves because she firmly believes that deep down no one is inherently bad or good. Relationships 'Family' Tobias Winters Toby is Holly's older brother. He arrived at Xavier's about two years before her own powers emerged. A bit of an overprotective brother, he nonetheless cares deeply about his sister and only tries to do what is best for her, even if she doesn't think so. He's not above helping her out of a jam, like when she was arrested for driving without a license, and his always there for her when she needs him most. She finds that it is incredibly easy to get the upper hand by flashing her big blue eyes and putting a puppy dog stare. It has been proven that he is the only (or one of the few) people who cannot resist her blue eyes and is likely to let her get away with a lot or do whatever she asks. She doesn't abuse this power, but both are very well aware of it. Diana Sottomayor Holly has known Diana since she was a baby and growing up, she's considered her as more of a sister. If anything, Diana is the one person Holly looks up to the most and always tries to imitate the good aspects of her older sister's personality. When in introducing her to others, it is almost as natural as breathing to introduce her as her sister despite their obvious differences. Holly aspires to follow in Diana's footsteps and pursue a career in anthropology out of immense interest in the field. In February of 2010, Holly was whisked away along with others to Avalon and helped the midwives there deliver Diana's twins. Since coming back, she has read through a book that one of the midwives gave her with healing herbs, history, and myths of Avalon. Occasionally she babysits the twins in her free time for Diana or the twins' father, Xander. Juliet Winters Holly didn't know that her brother was in love with anyone at the mansion until she arrived there herself. From a first meeting, Juliet was kind, compassionate, and very beautiful, everything that Holly had hoped her brother would find. Due to the both of them working in the infirmary, they were able to talk and get to know each other well. Holly was the bridesmaid at Juliet's wedding, experiencing the beauty and splendor of a true love, Holly hoped and prayed that she would find something as passionate and eternal as their love. Over the years the pair has become as close to sisters and Holly sees Juliet as an inspiration of strength and faith. Erin Winters Holly's beautiful niece whom she occasionally babysits and adores above all other children at the mansion. 'Friends' Rowan Aubergines Holly met Rowan in detention near the end of the school year and the two became insta-friends. Both have wild personalities, though Rowan is a bit more wild than her, and both have a fun loving attitude that often puts them in trouble. Despite their differences in growing up, they have a lot of things in common and have shared many adventures. Elle McNabb Elle is one of Holly's best friends and the two are about as close as can be. They are always up for some fun and willing to go the extra mile for each other. They've shared many different adventures, but also hardships. Holly was the only one who knew how upset Elle was when Arthur died to protect her and spent everyday with her, helping her friend get better. Though it is still a bumpy road, Holly still tries to do everything she can to cheer all her friends up in anyway possible. Evelyn Taylor Eve and Holly's first meeting was normal, but that was about where it ended. A meeting with Sinister seemed to bond the two teens. A running joke between the two is that Holly could be anywhere, but if Eve is in distress and not in her right frame of mind, she will always hit Holly with a water attack unintentionally. This was proven twice when they first went up against Sinister and then again in Haiti. Holly and Eve occasionally tease each other with this, Eve preparing for an attack and Holly ducking behind the nearest object. Jennifer Taylor Holly met Jenny when they and a few friends snuck out to an Eminem concert and got stranded in the Bronx. They are good friends who occasionally hang out together and share a few classes. Ivy Rossum If ever there was a twin out there for Holly, it'd take the shape of Ivy Rossum. They met last year and despite several year age differences, found that they have an uncanny sense of understanding between each other. At times it seems like they know what the other is thinking, which often leads to them repeating each other's actions, unintentionally, or ideas. This 'twin-thing' that they share has caused them to constantly refer to each other as twins and, once people get past Holly's obvious accent, the people they tell it to completely buy it. 'Lovers' Tristan Black Holly and Tristan never fully had their feet on the ground completely, however they did share a few experiences such as Holly's first kiss. They met in the laundromat and they seemed to have a connection. The only problem: Tristan's flighty escapes. It seemed like the more he tried to get away from her, the harder it got and the more the sought each other out to talk. However, at one point Holly got frustrated with his exits and she blocked it to make sure he wouldn't easily run out. At that moment they shared their first kiss. After going on a few dates, Holly and Tristan seemed to be leading somewhere, but his inner demons weighed heavily on him and he needed time alone ti sort through them. Tristan left at the start of the year, much to Holly's disappointment. She'll always consider it the 'one that could have been'. During her two year period away from the mansion, Holly found herself in a position to be reunited with Tristan. In a summer long adventure, Holly ran into him in Egypt where he revealed some pretty interesting lore. Although Holly didn't believe in ancient god's and powerful artifacts, it nevertheless proved vital in the end. When Holly and Jake were getting ready to head back to England, Tristan and Holly were able to find closure, as Holly's feelings for Jake proved true. Jacob McKnight Not soon into the new year, Holly met a new guy that she started taking an interest in. He seemed nice and smart, not to mention very attractive, and the more they talked, the more they had in common. They shared similar taste in music, literature, and seemed to always have something to talk about. More importantly, he was the first guy she was interested in who didn't run away! They went out once to a club where they both showed proficiency in dance, before leaving the club to talk more in private and in silence. Ending the date on a high note, Jake displayed a little magic and Holly gave him a kiss goodnight. By the end of Holly's senior year they had formed a relationship. After Jake's mafia family resurfaced, Jake found himself in danger once more. Realizing the States were no longer safe, he decided to follow Holly to Cambridge in England so that he could be safe and be with her. For three straight years they lived a normal life away from Xavier's, but growing tensions between humans and mutants discrupted that and when New York City was taken by the Brotherhood, the tension hit a peak. In April, Cambridge Universit was bombarded with a riot that would change everything. In a desperate attempt to save another mutant, Jake died trying to protect Holly. After his funeral, Holly moved back to the States, transferring to Cornell and moving back to Xavier's like Jake and she originally planned. Andrew Sloss After several months in the mansion nursing a grieving heart Holly saw Andrew, Ivy's (her best friend) ex-fiance. They had met before, briefly, when he had been with Ivy however the two never really considered each other friends. Having not seen or spoken to Ivy in months, the pair found it easy to be friends without any awkwardness. On Holly's 20th birthday, in a drunken haze, she admitted her physical attraction to the other blond and kissed him without shame. A few days later while having lunch with a friend, she got to thinking about striking up a friends with benefits relationship after her friend, Farrah, encouraged her to do so. Feeling that becoming intimate physically would not only help her forget her pain but also start her towards the path of recovery (and eventually a new romantic relaitonship with another) Holly proposed the idea to Andy. She needed someone she could trust and she trusted him. To her surprise he actually accepted and are currently keeping their sexual relationship private although outwardly their closeness is a little obvious. 'Mentors' Jean Grey-Summers Jean is Holly's 'boss' and runs the infirmary alongside Dr. Dominic Giovanni. She's leaned a lot from Jean since working in the infirmary, about medicine and constantly shadows her when she is working on a patient. At times, she lets Holly take the reigns with very careful supervision, and so long as the situation is very minor, and teaches her step-by-step how to do something. Had Holly not have her heart set on anthropology, she would have had a very rewarding career as a doctor. Dominic Giovanni Dominic works alongside Jean to direct the staff and its young healers who do not yet carry a degree in medicine. Holly identifies with him a little bit more due to his powers and hers being similar. Chloe Saunders Chloe is Holly's mentor and works alongside her in the infirmary. Holly looks up to Chloe, due to their powers being very similar and Holly's powers having the potential to grow and be able to do anything that Chloe is capable of doing at present. Trivia *Huge Harry Potter fan (she's read every single book) *Allergic to shellfish *Her senior year of high school she discovered that her entire paternal side were Lilith worshippers and as a result are also servants of Apocalypse. *Due to her previously sheltered existence, Holly has been prone to do what some may call rebellious acts just because she wants to try new things. *When she was young she had a rare strain of meningitis and was cured by Lilith. *Adores peanut butter and chocolate *At one time considered going to Juliard to be a violinist Quotes ”Are you sure this is sanitary? I mean, what if the last person to use this had mono or something? I don’t want to get sick because of carelessness.” (XI4, Past thread - This Town, This Night, This Crowd. 07/25/2010) What separates you from a real killer is the guilt, the sadness, and the desire to never let it happen again.” (XI4, Times Square.06/03/2010) ”I got to warn you. I’m a pitiful fighter, at least when it comes to sparring so sorry if I hurt you, me, or anyone else in our close proximity.” (XI5, Self Defense. 08/09/2010) ”I guess...I’ve never been the type to want to play it safe.” (XI5, Green Light Resort Bar. 08/15/2010)